Page:Willich, A. F. M. - The Domestic Encyclopædia (Vol. 2, 1802).djvu/487

Rh , of which we have treated in the preceding article.  , the Lesser. See.  HEMLOCK, the, Phellandrium, L. a genus of plants consisting of two species, one of which, the aquaticum, Water Hemlock, or Horse-bane, is a native of Britain. It grows in rivers, ditches, and pools: and flowers in the months of June and July. This species is eaten by horses, sheep, and goats, but swine do not relish it, and it is totally refused by cows. It is considered as a fatal poison to horses, which on eating it become paralytic: this affection is occasioned by an insect called curculio paraplecticus, which is generally found within its stems; the usual antidote is the dung of pigs, which ought to be given to the animal as early as possible.

The leaves of the horse-bane are sometimes employed in discutient cataplasms; its seeds are recommended in intermittent fevers and pulmonary consumptions, but ought to be prescribed by the faculty.  HEMLOCK, the, or , Cicuta virosa, L. is an indigenous perennial plant, growing on the sides of pools and rivers; flowering in the month of August.—It is likewise one of the most virulent vegetable poisons; its root is large, hollow, and contains a very acrid milky juice that soon changes to a saffron-colour, and has a nauseous taste, somewhat similar to that of parsnip: the stem attains a height of four feet.—Early in the spring, when it grows in the water, it is frequently eaten by cows, which are inevitably killed by it; but, as the summer advances, its scent becomes stronger, and they carefully avoid it. Yet, though it is thus fatal to cows, it is eaten with safety by horses, sheep, and goats, which last devour it with avidity.  HEMP, the, or Cannabis sativa, L. a valuable plant, which grows wild in the East Indies, and is cultivated to a very considerable extent in Britain, particularly in the counties of Sussex and Suffolk. It thrives most favourably on a sandy, moist loam, or on old meadows and low bottoms near rivers, and is propagated from seed, which is sown in the proportion of eleven pecks, or two bushels per acre, ; though a much smaller quantity will suffice, if it be. The proper time of sowing hemp, is from the middle to the end of April, or even a month later; but the best crops are generally produced from the earlier seeds.

This useful plant requires no weeding: the male, or fimble hemp, is usually fit for pulling in the middle of July, or about nine weeks after it is sown. The female, termed karle, or seed-hemp, is seldom ripe till September, when it is pulled, tied into bundles, and set to dry: at the end of ten days they are loosened, and the heads or tops are held upon a hurdle by one person, while another, with a small threshing flail, beats out the seed.

The hemp is then prepared for the manufacturer, either by grassing, that is, lying on stubble or pasture ground, in order to be gradually dew-ripened; or, by water-ratting, for which process clay-pits are preferred to running-water. In these, the hemp is immersed in